Holy Martyrs Fausta the Virgin, Evilasius and Maximus (+305–311)

The holy Virgin Martyr Fausta, and with her Evilasius and Maximus, suffered during the persecution under Diocletian in the city of Cyzicus (Mysia), between 305 and 311.

The daughter of God-fearing Christians, Fausta, orphaned early, lived a strict and pious life. The Christian maiden was denounced to the governor, and he sent the eighty-year-old priest Evilasius to turn Fausta away from the true faith. The saint courageously confessed Christ, for which she was terribly tortured and put into a wooden box. The tormentors tried to the point of exhaustion to saw asunder or burn the martyr shut up in the box, but could do nothing: protected by the grace of God, not only the maiden but the box too remained unharmed. The priest Evilasius was amazed at this manifestation of God’s grace; he believed and fearlessly confessed Christ.

The king charged the eparch Maximus with investigating what had happened, and he began to torture the old man who had become a Christian. Evilasius asked Fausta to pray for him, and then courageously endured the torments. Saint Fausta was thrown to wild beasts to be torn to pieces, but they did not touch the martyr. Then the martyrs were thrown into boiling water; again the martyrs remained unharmed and prayed for their executioners.

Amazed at the saints’ faith and patience, Maximus besought the Lord to look on him too with a merciful eye. Suddenly the heavens opened and the eparch saw Jesus Christ with radiant angels, archangels and other saints. Shaken by this wonderful vision, he cried out aloud: “Lord, receive my soul too!”, ran to the cauldron standing over the fire, into which the holy martyrs had been thrown a little earlier by his own order, and leapt into it. A voice rang out from heaven: “Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest!” And, encouraged by this call and filled with joy, the lambs committed their souls to the Lord.